1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to heat insulation or dissipation of an equipment using a solar battery.
2. Related Background Art
Conventionally, various applications associated with a portable electronic equipment with a solar battery have been proposed. In particular, as for a heat insulation or dissipation (radiation) structure to a main body equipment, as described in Japanese Utility Model No. 63-160056, a secondary battery and a solar battery are integrally detachable from a main body. When energy is to be charged under the solar light, the batteries are detached from the main body, and consequently, the main body equipment is protected from heat.
However, in such a structure, an attachment/detachment mechanism becomes undesirably complicated, and a contact portion is easily contaminated, thus causing a conduction failure. Furthermore, when a user erroneously places the main body equipment as a whole under the solar light, the temperature of the main body equipment increases, resulting in troubles.
In recent years, a lithium ion battery available from Sony Energy Tech Kabushiki Kaishya has characteristics suitable for a combination with a solar battery, i.e., it has no memory effect and suffers less self-discharging as compared to a conventional nickel-cadmium battery. However, the lithium ion battery is weak against a high temperature. Overcoming this drawback poses a bottleneck in the manufacture of a portable electronic equipment with a solar battery.
One aspect of the present invention is to provide an equipment using a solar energy collecting unit, such as, for example, a solar battery, which comprises a space forming portion for forming a space for at least one of heat insulation and heat dissipation between at least one of an equipment and a charging unit, and a solar battery, and can prevent deterioration, destruction, and the like of an equipment arrangement, the charging unit, an image recording medium, and the like due to an increase in temperature.
Other aspects of the present invention will become apparent from the following description of the preferred embodiments.